Saturday Vids: My AAUW Voting Pep Talk

The American Association of University Women (AAUW) recently asked me to contribute to their “Our Voice. Our Vote” campaign. Here are my thoughts on why I’ll be voting in November (and why you should be, too!)!

Saturday Vids: It’s Time

AllOut.org writes about this video: When our friends at GetUp!, an Australian campaigning organization, launched this "Love Story" video, they hoped Australians would watch and raise their voice for marriage equality. But in just a few days, over almost 2 million people around the world have watched and made it a worldwide phenomenon.Sometimes the simplest images and stories are the ones that drive home the fundamental point that drives our work: that gay couples are no different than straight couples.We at All Out were incredibly moved by this video - and wanted to share it with our global community. Will you take a moment to watch and share it, giving more people a chance to join the conversation? After you watch, sign our letter to Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, asking her to push marriage equality onto the platform at her party's national conference THIS WEEK.

Saturday Vids: The Truth About The Economy In 2 Minutes

We all know that the economy is screwed right now. There's no way to exist in this country and be unaware of that fact. But do any of us really understand why? I know I didn't until I watched this video, in which former Labor Secretary Robert Reich simplified the hell out of it. It's definitely worth watching - now, when the topic of the economy comes up, I can talk semi-intelligently about what's going on (mehhhh just barely, but still).

Feminism and Education: The Truth About Student Loans

I would argue that the most difficult thing about the entire process of higher level, collegiate education is not getting in, though that is what the public conversation at large is about. The most difficult, troubling part of higher education is paying for it once you do get in. Even with financial aid, even with other scholarships, so many people end up with crippling debt by the end of their college years.

These past few months, I’ve watched my class celebrate getting into college. Then I’ve watched everybody have an “Oh, shit” moment trying to figure out where the money is going to come from to fund the next four years of their life. I’ve watched brilliant people decide to go to schools they are beyond over-qualified for because they …

Saturday Vids: Educate Girls in Malawi

Help Educate Girls In Malawi!

Statistically, according to UNESCO’s 2005 Education For All monitoring report, only 31% of adult women can read and write in Malawi. This is shocking when compared to men – 80% of whom are literate. Kasungu district in Malawi, where the Join My Village project is taking place is no exception in terms of prioritizing boys when it comes to education. Kasungu is among the top list of districts where literacy levels are very low in women.

Once educated, a girl child is more capable of helping the greater family as she is the one that spends more time with them and so can act as a good mentor. An educated girl can easily manage to start a small business that can help the family financially. …

Let’s Talk About Sex: Emergency Contraception (EC) Edition

Today, my lovely FBomb friends, is a wonderful day. Why is that? You may perplexedly ponder. I don’t recall hearing talk of it being International Free Cupcake Day and I’m pretty sure Ryan Gosling isn’t going to spontaneously show up on my doorstop “Hey Girl” -ing me…is he? IS HE?!?!

NO! HE’S NOT! BUT THIS IS EVEN BETTER! IT’S BACK UP YOUR BIRTH CONTROL NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION!

Yay!

So here’s the thing about birth control: there’s no excuse not to use it and everybody should. Especially teens. Especially, especially feminist teens. I don’t think most kids in our generation even comprehend how much fighting the awesome women who came before us did to secure us the right to even have birth control, and beyond that, the social …

Saturday Vids: I Am This Land Video Contest Winner

I'm a little late on this, but a while back I was one of the judges for the I Am This Land video contest on diversity. The winner was recently announced, and I'm happy to report that the video "Role Call" was the winner. A little bit about the winning video:

"Role Call" is a fun and thought-provoking video made by a team of students and alumni at Flushing International High School (FIHS) in Queens, New York. The MTV-style video - of a student in class daydreaming about gender, cultural expression, and racial stereotypes - won the judges over.

“The video was created in response to several incidents of violence in our school, and our desire to use media to promote respect and tolerance in our school and beyond,” said teacher Dillon Paul. "Our students come from approximately 40 different countries and speak 20 different languages. Like most high schools, however, cultural differences, sexual and gender identity can be sources of discomfort and fear, leading to bigotry, bullying and violence.” From Jean Franco Vergaray Franco (a student, and Lead Director and Editor on the film), “That we could portray one person being all these different personalities, all these different identities, was just a way to say, diversity is okay. People shouldn't be labeled.”